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The  Mormon  Problem. 


BY  WALTER  M.  BARROWS. 


GQ 


THE  MORMON  PROBLEM 


BY 

WALTER    M.   BARROWS, 
// 

PASTOR  OF  THE  CONGREGATIONAL  CHURCH  IN  SALT  LAKE  CITY. 


BOSTON: 

REPRINTED    FROM    THE    HOME    MISSIONARY    OF    DECEMBER, 


13  2- ^ 


Frank  Wood,  Printer, 
352   Washington  Street,  Boston. 


BAN' 


BANv. 
LIBRARY 


THE    MORMON    PROBLEM. 


UTAH  is  still  a  Territory,  although  for  over  twenty-five 
•  ^  years  Congress  has  been  besieged  with  petitions  to  admit  this 
Territory  into  the  Union,  under  the  name  of  "  The  State  of 
Deseret."  When  Nevada  was  admitted,  with  a  population 
of  40,000,  why  should  Utah  be  kept  out,  with  a  population  of 
130,000?  Polygamy  is  the  sufficient  answer  to  this  question. 
If  it  were  not  for  polygamy,  Utah  would  to-day  be  a  State. 
The  Mormon  delegate  to  Congress,  himself  a  polygamist,  is 
doing  all  in  his  power  to  get  Utah  admitted  with  polygamy. 
^j  If  the  people  of  the  United  States  are  not  watchful,  he  will 
succeed  ;  for  he  has  the  power  to  pledge  the  Mormon  vote  to 
any  party  that  will  procure  them  the  rights  of  Statehood  ;  and, 
in  the  exigences  of  party  strife,  the  votes  of  two  new  Senators 
CD  may  be  a  prize  too  tempting  for  one  party  or  the  other  to 
ui  resist.  But  when  Utah  is  once  a  State,  the  peculiar  institu- 
tions of  Mormonism  will  be  placed  beyond  the  reach  of  Con- 
gress ;  and,  in  the  end,  a  bloody  revolution  may  be  needed  to 
lop  the  excrescences  of  an  Asiatic  civilization  that  will  then 
have  been  firmly  engrafted  on  the  body  politic.  Hence,  it  is 
very  important  that  the  people  of  the  United  States  should  be 
made  aware  of  the  schemes  of  the  Mormon  hierarchy,  and 
should  instruct  their  representatives  in  Congress  to  keep 


8  THE  MORMON  PROBLEM 

Utah  a  Territory  until  the  people  have  adopted  a  constitution 
prohibiting  polygamy. 

But  will  the  people  of  Utah,  a  large  majority  of  whom  are 
Mormons,  ever  consent  to  do  this  ?  Is  there  any  change  of 
sentiment  in  regard  to  poly  gam}'  observable  among  them? 
Are  the  agencies  now  at  work  sufficient  to  solve  this 
vexed  Mormon  problem  ?  I  believe  that  they  are,  if  time 
enough  is  given  them ;  but,  with  their  present  force,  it  will 
require  a  long  time.  The  work  could  be  hastened  vastly  if 
Congress  would  assist  the  Liberal  party  of  Utah  with  judicious 
legislation,  and  if  the  Christian  people  east  and  west  of  us 
would  assist  in  increasing  the  number  and  efficiency  of  the 
reformatory  agencies  now  at  work. 

It  is  my  purpose  in  this  article  to  describe  these  agencies, 
and  to  suggest  how  they  may  be  strengthened. 

THE    GENTILES. 

All  persons  not  Mormons  that  come  to  Utah  are  stigma- 
tized as  Gentiles,  and  are  looked  upon  and  treated  as  intrud- 
ers, who  have  no  right  to  invade  the  Territory  pre-empted  by 
the  Latter-Day  Saints.  And,  from  their  point  of  view,  the 
Mormon  leaders  are  right  in  warning  their  followers  to  treat 
the  Gentiles  as  enemies;  for  the  very  presence  of  this  outside 
element  has  a  disintegrating  effect  on  their  system.  Mormon- 
ism  is  a  plant  that  can  grow  only  in  a  cellar.  It  cannot  stand 
the  light  of  day.  Brigham  Young  was  shrewd  enough  to  rec- 
ognize this  fact.  When  he  was  crossing  the  plains,  in  search 
of  a  new  home  for  his  people,  he  was  met  by  one  of  his  elders, 
who  had  come  overland  from  California,  to  report  that  that  was 
a  very  rich  country — just  the  place  for  the  new  settlement. 
But  Brigham  insisted  on  stopping  in  the  secluded  valleys  of 
Utah;  for  he  felt  that,  to  build  up  "  the  kingdom,"  he  must  be 
isolated  from  the  rest  of  the  world. 


THE  MORMON  PROBLEM.  9 

At  a  later  period  he  discovered,  in  the  mountains  near  Salt 
Lake  City,  large  quantities  of  iron  pyrites,  which  he  mistook 
for  pure  gold ;  but  he  refused  to  utilize  this  discovery  him- 
self, and  commanded  his  people  to  keep  it  secret;  for  he  knew 
that  if  it  were  noised  abroad,  a  tide  of  Gentiles  would  pour 
in,  and  apostacy  from  the  Mormon  Church  would  begin. 

Indeed,  the  first  serious  rupture  in  this  church  was  occa- 
sioned by  Godbe  and  Harrison,  who  published  in  their  maga- 
zine an  article  advising  their  brethren  to  turn  their  attention 
to  mining.  But,  on  the  completion  of  the  Union  Pacific  Rail- 
road, in  1869,  the  deluge  came;  and  the  result  is  showing  that, 
while  the  Yankee  Mahommed  could  build  up  his  peculiar  sys- 
tem in  a  Mecca  of  the  desert,  his  system  could  not  be  main- 
tained where  freedom  of  thought  and  speech  and  action  were 
allowed. 

For,  although  the  Mormon  Church  is  apparently  as  strong 
to-day  as  it  has  ever  been,  yet  this  is  not  really  the  case.  Its 
numbers  have  been  kept  up  by  zealous  proselyting  among  the 
lower  classes  of  Europe ;  but  the  more  intelligent  and  enter- 
prising of  its  old  members  have  apostatized.  While  some 
able  leaders  remain,  most  of  these  are  lukewarm  in  the  faith, 
and  remain  constant  to  the  church  simply  from  business  con- 
siderations. They  find  it  profitable  to  handle  the  tithing. 

The  first  Mormon  preachers  were  ignorant  fanatics ;  but 
they  were  honest,.and  their  words  carried  a  weight  that  sin- 
cerity always  carries,  even  in  a  bad  cause.  The  preachers 
now  have  "the  ravings  of  the  sybil,  but  lack  the  inspiration." 
Their  talk  sounds  hollow  ;  the  ring  of  sincerity  is  gone.  When 
the  present  leaders  pass  away, —  as  they  soon  must,  for  most 
of  them  are  old  men, —  who  are  to  take  their  places  ?  I  have 
heard  Mormons  ask  this  question  in  tones  of  despair.  There 
are  none  to  fill  their  places.  The  young  men  feel  no  interest 


10  THE  MORMON  PROBLEM. 

in  Mormonism  as  a  system  of  religion,  and  when  they  get  a 
little  education  they  turn  their  backs  on  it  completely.  Polyg- 
amy, especially,  is  offensive  to  them.  Many  of  them  are  the 
victims  of  this  vicious  system,  and  they  are  indignant  at  the 
wrong  that  has  been  done  them  in  the  holy  name  of  religion. 
They  are  becoming  sensitive  to  the  opinion  of  the  outside 
world ;  and  that  opinion  harmonizes  with  the  decision  of  the 
Federal  Court,  declaring  that  their  mothers  are  but  concu- 
bines. In  Salt  Lake  City,  where  the  Gentiles  are  most  nu- 
merous, very  few  polygamous  marriages  now  take  place  ;  and, 
if  the  liberalizing  and  Christianizing  influences  that  have  been 
at  work  in  this  city  could  be  carried  to  every  city  and  village 
in  the  Territory,  the  Mormon  problem  would  practically  be 
solved.  But  what  is  there  in  Utah  to  attract  Gentile  immi- 
gration ?  or,  in  other  words,  what  are  its  elements  of  wealth  ? 

KESOURCES    OF    UTAH. 

The  Territory  of  Utah  is  as  large  as  all  of  New  England, 
and  nearly  one-half  of  Old  England  besides.  It  lies  between 
the  Rocky  Mountains  and  the  Sierras.  But  this  great  inter- 
mural  basin  is  itself  a  plateau,  with  its  own  system  of  moun- 
tains and  valleys.  The  valleys  are  from  4,000  to  6,000  feet 
above  the  sea  level,  and  the  mountain  ranges  rise  to  over 
13,000  feet  high.  They  are  thus  so  lofty  that  the  moisture  is 
stored  away  in  them  in  the  form  of  snow  and  ice,  to  be  grad- 
ually melted  by  the  summer's  sun,  coming  down  them  in  peren- 
nial streams,  to  water  the  plains  below.  The  valleys  are  broad, 
and  many  of  them  exceedingly  fertile,  and  are  adapted  to  the 
raising  of  nearly  all  kinds  of  grain  and  almost  every  variety  of 
fruit.  The  apple,  the  peach,  the  plum,  the  apricot  and  the 
vine  flourish  in  the  north,  and  the  almond  and  the  fig-tree  in 
the  south.  But  as  the  summers  are  long  and  dry,  irrigation  is 


THE  MORMON  PROBLEM.  11 

necessary,  in  most  cases,  to  secure  good  crops.  But  this  is  no 
disadvantage;  for,  with  irrigation,  the  farmer  is  sure  of  his 
crops,  and  can  raise  much  more  per  acre  than  those  can  who 
depend  directly  on  the  clouds  for  their  moisture.  Indeed,  the 
quantity  of  wheat  that  is  raised  here  on  an  acre  of  ground, 
well-irrigated,  is  simply  incredible.  But  as  the  country  is 
developed,  the  amount  of  rain  that  falls  increases,  and  large 
quantities  of  grain  are  now  being  raised  without  any  artificial 
irrigation.  It  is  true  that  there  are  large  tracts  of  land  in 
Utah  that  cannot  be  utilized  at  all  for  agricultural  purposes, 
but  these  are  well  adapted  to  grazing.  The  grama  grass,  that 
is  found  in  bunches  on  the  mountain-sides  and  scattered  over 
the  arid-looking  plains,  is  the  best  food  in  the  world  for  cattle 
and  sheep.  Wool  is  already  one  of  our  chief  articles  of  export, 
and  considerable  quantities  are  used  at  home,  to  supply  the 
seven  woolen-mills  now  running  in  this  Territory. 

But  mining  will  always  be  the  great  industry  of  Utah. 
Gold,  silver,  copper,  lead,  iron,  coal,  salt  and  many  other  min- 
erals are  found  in  paying  quantities.  Probably  there  is  no 
other  portion  of  our  country,  of  equal  size,  that  is  so  rich  in 
lead,  iron  and  coal.  Utah  already  stands  first  in  the  list  of 
lead-producing  States,  and  third  in  silver.  But  the  iron  and 
the  coal  will  ultimately  be  our  great  sources  of  wealth.  Our 
coal  will  make  as  good  coke  as  that  at  Connellsville. 

Mr.  J.  Blodgett  Brittan,  the  Philadelphia  ironmaster,  writes 
of  the  magnitude  of  these  deposits  as  follows  :  "  I  now  hold  the 
impression  that  these  deposits  are  among  the  wonders  of  the 
world  —  are  literally  immense.  If  such  coke  as  you  sent  me 
can  be  produced  there  in  quantity,  Utah's  iron  resources  must 
exceed  those  of  any  other  section  of  the  Union."  With  cheap 
coal,  iron  and  wool,  Utah  is  certain  to  become  a  great  manu- 
facturing State ;  and  the  high  freight  rates  will  always  be  a 


12  THE  MORMON  PROBLEM. 

protective  tariff  to  home  industries.  These  facts  are  enough 
to  show  that  Utah  is  very  rich  in  material  resources,  and  is 
capable  of  supporting  a  large  population.  But  I  would  also 
call  attention  to  the 

CENTRAL    POSITION   OF   UTAH. 

A  few  years  ago  Utah  was  the  most  isolated  portion  of  our 
country.  It  is  now  one  of  the  most  central;  for  it  is  on  the 
great  highway  that  runs  through  the  land  from  east  to  west, 
and  it  will  be  on  that  other  great  highway  that  is  to  run 
through  it  from  north  to  south,  connecting  Oregon  and  Mexico. 

Any  one  who  will  look  at  President  Tenney's  admirable 
map,  published  in  The  Home  Missionary  for  October,  will  see 
at  once  that  Utah  is  exactly  in  the  center  of  "  The  New  West." 
It  is  not  only  the  geographical  center,  but  it  is  destined  to  be 
the  commercial  center  of  this  vast  region.  The  Union  Pacific 
and  Central  Pacific  railroads  run  through  the  northern  portion 
of  the  Territory.  The  Union  Pacific  has  a  branch  road  run- 
ning south,  over  one  hundred  miles,  with  four  narrow-gauge 
feeders  extending  out  into  the  mining  districts.  The  Utah 
Northern  is  being  pushed  rapidly  for  Montana,  and  is  already 
finished  to  the  Snake  River,  in  Idaho.  The  great  mineral 
wealth  of  Southern  Utah  will  certainly  draw  thither  the 
Southern  Pacific.  There  is  one  mine  now  being  developed  in 
the  'Frisco  District,  that  has  $20,000,000  in  lead  and  silver  ore 
now  in  sight ;  and  this  alone  will  be  a  strong  enough  magnet 
to  attract  the  Atchison,  Topeka  and  Santa  Fe  Railroad,  or  one 
of  its  rivals,  as  soon  as  they  cross  the  Rocky  Mountains.  Thus 
Utah  is  to  become  the  ganglion  of  a  network  of  railroads  run- 
ning out  in  every  direction;  and  this  alone  will  make  it  a 
center  of  great  influence. 

But  what  sort  of  influence  will  that  be?     We  cannot  fore- 


TEE  MORMON  PROBLEM.  13 

cast  the  future  ;  but  this  much,  at  least,  is  certain :  this  influ- 
ence will  not  be  wholesome,  unless  these  now  communities, 
during  the  formative  period  of  their  history,  are  leavened  with 
the  leaven  of  the  Gospel  of  Jesus  Christ.  Now  is  the  time  to 
plant  Christian  churches  all  over  this  new  region.  This  work 
cannot  safely  be  delayed.  The  let-alone  principle  is  an  un- 
sound one  to  apply  to  Mormonism,  or  any  system  of  evil.  The 
teachers  of  error  are  aggressive ;  the  teachers  of  the  truth 
must  be  equally  so.  The  Mormons  must  be  converted  from 
their  errors,  before  they  will  make  good  American  citizens ; 
but  this  will  not  be  done  by  simply  letting  them  alone,  nor  by 
calling  them  hard  names.  It  is  true  that  their  system  is  an 
anachronism,  a  relic  of  barbarism;  but  they  must  be  con- 
vinced of  this  before  they  will  leave  it ;  and  this  can  only  be 
done  by  the  slow  process  of  education. 

This  is  the  work,  then,  that,  as  Christians,  we  are  called 
upon  to  do ;  and  we  should  enter  upon  it  with  earnestness, 
both  for  the  sake  of  the  victims  of  this  superstition,  and  also 
for  the  sake  of  our  common  country.  In  this  country  we  are 
all  members  one  of  another ;  and  if  one  member  suffers,  every 
member  will  suffer.  The  virus  of  ignorance  and  superstition 
in  Utah  will  make  New  England  sick.  Although  the  rich 
material  resources  of  Utah  may,  in  the  end,  attract  so  many 
Gentiles  that  we  shall  be  able  to  out- vote  the  Mormons,  yet 
even  then,  if  they  retain  their  present  ideas,  they  will  be  a 
disturbing  element. 

But,  while  pleading  for  the  Mormons,  I  would  not  forget  the 
Gentiles.  This  class  are  exposed  to  peculiar  temptations. 
They  see  such  a  travesty  of  religion  in  the  Tabernacle,  they 
see  so  many  unholy  things  done  in  the  name  of  religion,  that 
they  are  apt  to  become  averse  to  everything  connected  with 
religion.  Then,  too,  most  of  them  come  to  Utah  simply  to 


14  TEE  MORMON  PROBLEM. 

make  money ;  and  they  become  so  absorbed  in  this  pursuit 
that  at  last  they  worship  no  God  but  Mammon.  Even  profess- 
ing Christians,  when  they  get  out  here,  so  far  removed  from 
the  influences  of  home  and  church,  are  swept  away  by  the 
prevailing  current  of  worldliness,  and  make  shipwreck  of 
their  faith.  For  the  sake,  then,  of  this  class,  we  need  to  plant 
Christian  institutions  in  Utah. 

CHURCHES   AND    SCHOOLS. 

Mission  work  in  Utah  very  much  resembles  that  in  foreign 
lands,  and  similar  methods  should  be  adopted.  The  same  rea- 
sons that  influence  the  missionaries  in  Japan  and  India  to 
start  day-schools  in  connection  with  their  church  work  will 
apply  with  equal  force  to  Utah.  We  have  no  system  of  free 
schools.  The  Mormon  leaders  are  opposed  to  all  schools, 
though  they  have  been  obliged  to  open  some  in  self-defence, 
to  keep  their  children  from  flocking  to  the  Gentile  schools; 
but  most  of  these  are  of  a  very  inferior  order,  and  are  used  to 
propagate  the  peculiar  tenets  of  Mormonism.  The  teachers 
are  required  to  indoctrinate  their  pupils  with  the  absurdities 
of  the  Book  of  Mormon,  and  the  puerilities  of  the  Book  of 
Doctrines  and  Covenants.  The  leaders  know  very  well  that 
after  the  children  have  been  to  our  schools  for  a  few  months 
they  are  spoiled  for  Mormonism,  and  so  they  do  all  in  their 
power  to  keep  them  away.  But,  notwithstanding  the  threat- 
enings  of  the  priesthood,  the  people  will  patronize  the  Gentile 
schools.  A  great  interest  in  education  is  being  awakened 
throughout  the  entire  territory.  The  Christian  missionary 
should  regard  this  as  a  very  encouraging  sign  of  the  times, 
and  should  at  once  take  advantage  of  it. 

We  need  a  strong,  energetic,  devoted  missionary  in  the 
southern  part  of  this  Territory,  to  organize  day-schools,  Sun- 


THE  MORMON   PROBLEM.  15 

day-schools  and  churches,  and  to  take  the  general  oversight 
of  this  branch  of  the  work.  He  ought  to  have  placed,  subject 
to  his  orders,  a  dozen  or  more  teachers,  and  sufficient  funds  to 
partly  pay  their  salaries.  A  portion  of  the  salary  can  be 
raised  by  tuition,  but  this  must  be  supplemented  from  other 
sources.  How  can  this  money  be  raised?  The  funds  of  the 
American  Home  Missionary  Society  were  not  contributed  for 
this  purpose ;  but  cannot  a  Woman's  Board  of  Home  Mis- 
sions be  organized  to  do  this  and  similar  work?  I  am  glad  to 
report  that  the  first  step  in  this  general  educational  work  has 
been  taken  in  the  founding  of 

THE    SALT   LAKE   ACADEMY. 

This  unsectarian  Christian  Academy  was  incorporated  under 
the  laws  of  Utah,  last  July,  and  opened  its  doors,  Sept.  9. 
Professor  EDWARD  BENNER,  of  Lowell,  Mass.,  is  Principal,  and 
he  has  already  exhibited  rare  qualifications  for  this  position. 
We  have  now  eighty  pupils,  and  this  number  can  be  doubled 
by  another  year,  if  we  can  secure  the  teachers  and  other  ne- 
cessary equipments.  An  Eastern  gentleman  recently  said  that 
he  regarded  this  as  the  most  important  educational  enterprise 
inaugurated  in  the  West  for  years.  The  future,  I  feel  sure, 
will  show  that  he  has  not  overestimated  its  importance.  It  is 
needed  to  educate  the  youth  of  Salt  Lake  City,  and  is  already 
attracting  pupils  from  the  surrounding  towns.  It  is  needed  to 
educate  teachers  for  the  outlying  districts.  It  is  needed  as 
an  auxiliary  to  the  Christian  Church,  in  the  work  of  regener- 
ating Utah,  and  bringing  it  into  harmony  with  the  nineteenth 
century.  A  few  years  ago  Utah  was  as  completely  closed  to 
all  civilizing  agencies  as  China  or  Japan  ever  were  j  but  now, 
in  the  providence  of  God,  the  wall  has  been  broken  down,  and 
this  vast  region  is  an  open  field  for  the  Christian  worker. 


16  THE  MORMAN  PROBLEM. 

Shall  we  not  eagerly,  thankfully,  occupy  it?  True,  it  is  a 
hard  field,  but,  on  this  account,  all  the  more  important.  A 
stranger,  looking  at  one  of  our  sage-brush  deserts,  might  say, 
"  It  is  impossible  to  raise  anything  there."  But  let  him  pull 
up  the  sage-brush  and  the  grease-wood,  and  turn  on  the  water, 
and  he  will  have  a  garden.  But  the  human  laborer  is  needed 
to  bring  the  water  and  the  soil  together.  And  so  with  the 
hearts  of  the  people  here :  they  seem  hard  and  barren ;  but 
the  Gospel  of  Christ,  the  water  of  life,  can  refresh  and  quicken 
them.  And  yet  God  has  so  ordered  it  that  the  human  agent 
is  needed  to  bring  the  two  together.  Who  will  come  and  en- 
gage in  this  work?  "The  wilderness  and  the  solitary  place 
shall  be  glad  for  them."  "And  the  parched  ground  shall  be- 
come a  pool,  and  the  thirsty  land  springs  of  water." 


